The Last Days of Café Leila

Posted on 17 October 2017 by Donia Bijan

A neighborhood caf in Tehran is at the center of this powerful and transporting story of love, family, friendship, and homecoming told against the backdrop of Iran s rich, yet tragic, history.When Noor returns to her native Iran for the first time in thirty years, so much about her homeland is different But Caf Leila the restaurant Noor s family has run for three generations hasn t changed Zod, Noor s father, is still at the caf s helm, a much loved patriarch offering laughter, solace, and nourishment to the makeshift family of regulars and waiters who call Caf Leila home With her discontented, very American teenage daughter, Lily, reluctantly at her side, Noor struggles to maintain a semblance of family life But Tehran is a place of contradictions, where grace and brutal violence both have a foothold, and it s not long before rebellious Lily is caught up in both As the novel folds back in time, stories emerge of Noor s ancestors, particularly of her mother, who was killed when Noor was a teenager As past and present converge, Noor begins to understand her place in and her responsibility to this world and to the many souls who have sought refuge at the caf The Last Days of Caf Leila is a powerful debut about the delicate, sometimes dangerous balance between history and progress, and the resilience of a family in the face of upheaval. Free Download [ The Last Days of Café Leila ] By [ Donia Bijan ] – kino-fada.fr Noor s life has hit a speedbump She works in a hospital as a nurse while raising her teenage daughter, Lily Years of marriage are in question after becoming aware of her husband s infidelities Noor decides to take some time to evaluate her life by taking her daughter to Tehran to visit her father She has not seen her dad or Iran since she left for California at eighteen Noor s dad runs Cafe Leila which has been the family business for years It continues to serve as a social gathering pla Noor s life has hit a speedbump She works in a hospital as a nurse while raising her teenage daughter, Lily Years of marriage are in question after becoming aware of her husband s infidelities Noor decides to take some time to evaluate her life by taking her daughter to Tehran to visit her father She h...3.5 Zod has kept the cafe going, even throughout the many tumultuous years in Tehran, feeding anyone who needed or wanted to eat, Even after his wife was killed in a horrible way, and due to these dangerous times especially for woman, he sends his daughter and son to America Heartbroken he kept going, looking forward to letters sent by his daughter Now though, a medical emergency has reared it s ugly head and his daughter Noor, dealing with a heartbreak of her own will return bringing with he 3.5 Zod has kept the cafe going, even throughout the many tumultuous years in Tehran, feeding anyone who needed or wanted to eat, Even after his wife was killed in a horrible way, and due to these dangerous times especially for woman, he sends his daughter and son to America Heartbroken he kept going, looking forward to letters sent by his daughter Now though, a medical emergency has reared it s ugly head and his daughter Noor, dealing with a heartbreak of her own will return bringing with her a reluctant teenage daughter.I initially didn t connect with this story, almost put it aside, so glad by books end that I did not Inside is a story filed with a great deal of love, of a family that has weathered uncertain times but not easily and not without sorrow Some wonderful characters here as well We also learn some about this cou...This is an engrossing story with emotional writing that explores the depths of family ties and the place we call home Told from multiple perspectives and going back and forth in time from pre to post Islamic Iran, the author creates compassionate characters and writes sumptuous descriptions of food, I vacillated between heartache and hunger pain.Until about a decade ago, I d not known an Iranian and I now consider myself lucky to have a few lovely Iranian women as close friends Theirs is one o This is an engrossing story with emotional writing that explores the depths of family ties a...4.5 starsWOW is the best word I can use to describe The Last Days of Caf Leila I absolutely loved the book all the way up until the end The ending made me very sad and while I am not sure how it could have ended differently, I wish it had I cannot say any without spoiling it so I will leave it at that The rest of the book is absolutely perfect.My emotions ran the full gamut while reading this book intense joy, intense sadness, horror, embarrassment, disbelief, and fascination When I b 4.5 starsWOW is the best word I can use to describe The Last Days of Caf Leila I absolutely loved the book all the way up until the end The ending made me very sad and while I am not sure how it could have ended differently, I wish it had I cannot say any without spoiling it so I will leave it at that The rest of the book is absolutely perfect.My emotions ran the full gamut while reading this book intense joy, intense sadness, horror, embarrassment, disbelief, and fascination When I began reading, I quickly realized how little I knew about Iran, both present day and the 20th century events that led up to present day My brief knowledge covered the Iran hostage crisis, the Iran Iraq conflicts, and the Iran revolution in 1979 While I knew Iran was ruled by a conservative Islamic government, I had no idea how conservative and restrictive the government actually is Bijan effectively co...3.5 starsI was originally drawn to this book by its cover and found inside a beautiful story of family, love, food, and Iranian culture which I was, for the most part, unfamiliar with.On Heritage Day at school, Lily s mom was careful to send her in with cinnamon laced churros to represent her paternal ancestry When classmates asked so what else are you Lily, as coached by her mom, lied and replied Italian Don t tell anyone you are Iranian Born and reared in Tehran but shipped to San Fransisco at age 18 by her father, Noor has turned her back on her home country She deeply loves her father, the sweet restauranteur Zod, but has not been back in 30 years at his insista On Heritage Day at school, Lily s mom was careful to send her in with cinnamon laced churros to represent her paternal ancestry When classmates asked so what else are you Lily, as coached by her mom, lied and replied Italian Don t tell anyone you are Iranian Born and reared in Tehran but shipped to San Fransisco at age 18 by her father, Noor has turned her back on her home country She deeply loves her father, the sweet restauranteur Zod, but has not been back in 30 years at his insistance.As ...The Last Days of Cafe Leila by Donia Bijan,is a powerful and emotional novel of love, loss and homecoming in Iran Cafe Leila is a family owned business in Tehran that has been there for 3 generations, making Iranian dishes with the freshest ingredients The author s detailed description of the cuisine was mouth watering Zod, the chef at Cafe Leila and the father of Noor and Marquad, lost his wife Peri to Islamic thugs, because as a women she spoke out She was raped and stoned repeatedly in th The Last Days of Cafe Leila by Donia Bijan,is a powerful and emotional novel of love, loss and homecoming in Iran Cafe Leila is a family owned business in Tehran that has been there for 3 generations, making Iranian dishes with the freshest ingredients The author s detailed descripti...Noor has lived in the United States for almost two decades after leaving her native Tehran for University This is the story of her return to Iran with her recalcitrant teen daughter in tow A story of family The Last Days of Caf Leila is a delight for the senses.Heartwarming narrative about three generations of an Iranian family, which since the 1930s has opened and run Caf Leila, which has become a landmark on that side of Tehran A story set in present day is that of Noor, whose father has sent her to America as a teenager with her brother when the Revolution and subsequent ultra Islamism exploded in the country There are flashbacks of family history Noor is now separated from her husband and at th...4.5 stars, rounded up to 5.I loved this book I would not have normally chosen a book mostly based in Iran, but I was fulfilling a challenge for a Goodreads book group I am so glad I found this book to read.Within the walls of Cafe Leila, all the turmoil unrest from the real world Iran have ceased The food the culture the connections to the patrons to the people who live work in the cafe were just so lovely There was love care thought but 4.5 stars, rounded up to 5.I loved this book I would not have normally chosen a book mostly based in Iran, but I was fulfilling a challenge for a Goodreads book group I am so glad I found this book to read.Within the walls of Cafe Leila, all the turmoil unrest from the real world Iran have ceased The food the culture the connections to the patrons to the people who live work in the cafe were just so lovely There was love care thought but into each meal the writing descriptions made me want to learn how to make all of this wonderful sounding foods I thought this would be a story where the unrest of the country would not enter into it, but that was not to ...

English
17 October 2017

Donia Bijan